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Author News & Interviews

Praised by the New York Times as “a gifted poet of that dark lushness in the heart of the American landscape,” Jonis Agee is the award-winning author of 12 books. Her latest, THE BONES OF PARADISE, is a multigenerational family saga set in the unforgiving Nebraska Sand Hills in the years following the massacre at Wounded Knee, and is at once a mystery, a tragedy, a romance, and an unflagging exploration of the beauty and brutality that defined the settling of the American west. In this interview with The Book Report Network's Alexis Burling, Agee --- in characteristically sumptuous prose --- discusses why she chose to tell this particular story at this particular moment in time, why she believes it’s futile for people to fight the truth of their histories, and how in the world she has come to own over 20 pairs of cowboy boots.

Beatriz Williams follows up her Schuyler Sisters trilogy (THE SECRET LIFE OF VIOLET GRANT, TINY LITTLE THING and ALONG THE INFINITE SEA) with A CERTAIN AGE, a stand-alone novel that brings the Roaring Twenties brilliantly to life in an enchanting tale of intrigue, romance and scandal in New York Society. In this interview, Williams discusses Der Rosenkavalier, the Strauss opera that serves as the direct inspiration for the book, how she adapted the opera’s characters to make them more dimensional for a modern audience, and how she researches her meticulously detailed historical fiction (hint: Google doesn’t hurt!).

John Gilstrap has cornered the market on hostage rescue thrillers, told through dynamic characters who operate as a single unit. His previous novel, AGAINST ALL ENEMIES, has been nominated for a Thriller Award by the International Thriller Writers organization*, and his latest, FRIENDLY FIRE, is the most intense installment of his Jonathan Grave series to date. In this interview, Gilstrap chats with Bookreporter.com’s Dean Murphy about terrorism in America, his nonfiction book adapted for film, daily life in the Gilstrap household, and upcoming new genres.

*On July 9, 2016, at a banquet held in New York City, AGAINST ALL ENEMIES won the Thriller Award for Best Paperback Original Novel.

International bestselling author Emelie Schepp introduces us to the enigmatic, unforgettable Jana Berzelius in MARKED FOR LIFE, the first installment of a chilling trilogy. Schepp didn’t take the traditional route to publication; instead of being deterred when her manuscript was rejected or ignored by major publishing houses, she published her work online and became one of the most popular self-published authors in Sweden. In this interview with Bookreporter.com’s Joe Hartlaub, Schepp opens up about her unique --- although increasingly less so --- path to success, why she feels inclined to explore the theme of envy between women, and what we can expect from her next.

Steven Rowley has worked as a freelance writer, newspaper columnist and screenwriter, but now, with his excellent debut in bookstores, he’s well on his way to becoming a household name. LILY AND THE OCTOPUS is an epic adventure and a fierce love story about the lengths to which one man will go to save his dog. In this interview, Rowley reveals the heartbreaking inspiration behind his first novel, why your 40s can feel like the “halftime” of your life, and how he tends to blur the lines between prose and poetry in his writing.